IMPACT OF CLIMATE CHANGE ON LAND USE/LAND COVER USING REMOTE SENSING AND GIS IN CHOPAN WATERSHED, GUNA, MADHYA PRADESH (INDIA)

Mohd Yousuf Khanday* and Akram Javed

Department of Geology, Aligarh Muslim University Aligarh (INDIA)

Received on : October 6, 2007

ABSTRACT

The satellite remote sensing provides a synoptic view of the earths surface and offers varied advantages hence has been widely accepted as a technique for mapping as well as monitoring of changes in land use/land cover. The present study makes an attempt to find out land use/land cover changes and its correlation with changes in climate over a period of 12 years using IRS data and GIS in Chopan watershed, Guna district of Madhya Pradesh (India). Standard methods of visual interpretation based on photographic and geotechnical elements were followed to delineate various land use/land cover categories such as cultivated land, uncultivated land, open forest, dense forest, open scrub, wasteland, water body, built up land. It was found that the area under cultivated land has decreased from 18.29 to 16.35 km2 (-1.45%), uncultivated land has increased from 8.24 to 24.28 km2 (12.02%), open forest has decreased from 38.05 to 36.95 km2 (-0.83%), dense forest has decreased from 42.15 to 29.21 km2 (-9.7%), open scrub has decreased from 14.86 to 3.80 km2 (-8.29%), wasteland has increased from 9.91 to 19.03 km2 (6.84%), water body has increased from 1.02 to 2.37 km2 (1.02%), and the extent of built up land has also increased from 0.70 to 1.23 km2 (0.40%) during twelve years (1989-2001), period.Analysis of the temperature data of 1986-2003 from Guna district has been divided into three seasons as summer, winter and monsoon indicated that the day time temperature has increased by 1.63